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Breakfast went by without too much trouble, other than Trish barely picking at her food until someone pointed out shewasn’t eating. As soon as he frowned at her, she started to. The change in routine had rattled her, but it was necessary. It would be a busy day. After breakfast, he picked up the food for Pet and Toy before heading out into the hall, where his com-unit rang.
As planned. Which was why he’d made sure to keep Trish moving this morning. He’d wanted to ensure she didn’t miss any of her meal.
“Yes.”
The Wolf’s voice sounded tinny in the earpiece, but it ensured Trish couldn’t hear any of the conversation.
“We’re going to be leaving soon. Are you ready to show your girl the passageways?”
“Yes.”
“Not going to change your mind on the bet?”
His lips almost curved. “No.”
Not when his babygirl’s hand tucked trustingly in his and her fingers had clung to his as he’d lifted his hand to answer the com-unit. She didn’t try to pull her hand away anymore, blatantly or sneakily. The change in her behavior had been slow enough, subtle enough, that he didn’t always notice the new ways in which she’d surrendered until he went over each day’s events in his mind.
“Alright then. Do it.”
“Yes, Sir.”
Reclaiming Trish’s hand, Jordan turned and took them off-route, which he knew would bother her. It was another step outside the routine.
“Where are we going?” Her voice was a little higher than usual. More anxious. His cock stirred, but he pushed his appreciation away.
Time for that later.
“You’re going to see a secret, little girl.”
He turned down a small hallway where one of the tunnels was. They were all marked by the Wolf’s sigil, but not all sigils were tunnels. The sigil was simple: it looked a bit like an ‘S’ with a horizontal line through the top curve. The Wolf had chosen it as a nod to his old name, Scott Thorne.
Since Jordan had an entrance in his rooms to the tunnels—as did the Wolf—Trish, Bella, and Alex would all have ample opportunity to attempt escape. The Wolf’s plan was complex, but the Moon made it necessary. Simply releasing captives with the information didn’t do any good because the Moon officials were erasing the captives’ memories of the information. The Wolf wanted to counter that. But first, they needed to test out the new serum and see if they could break its hold.
The Wolf also thought the individual in question might have something to do with it. The usual captives he took tended to be a bit weak-minded. Obsessed with themselves and even interested in the Wolf. Slave had nearly creamed herself when she realized she’d been ‘chosen.’ Pet and Toy were completely different. Jordan and Zaida had originally aimed to take Alex and Lisa—the Wolf had no interest in Ken, and therefore no interest in Bella—but circumstances had allowed for a more interesting pairing. Jordan was glad. Lisa had been another weak link; Bella had been the better choice.
So. Now for the test.
Facing the sigil on the wall, Jordan pressed his fingers across the shape quickly. The right end of the bar, the left end, the bottom curve, the top curve, and then on each place where the ‘S’ intersected the horizontal bar, going from left to right. The wall sank inward and slid silently to the side.
Trish’s reaction was adorable. Her jaw dropped, and her eyes went so wide they practically bugged. Jordan couldn’t help but chuckle at her.
He took her hand and pulled her into the passageway alongside him. He could almost hear her brain working. She was smart: she’d already realized the sigil was present in his rooms as well, and the implications of that.
“Are all of them like that?” she asked.
“No,” he answered with a casualness he didn’t feel. Despite his bet with the Wolf, there was a small tightening in his stomach now that he’d revealed one of the secrets within the Compound. Would she try to use it to leave him? He’d been sure the answer was no when it was just a hypothetical. Not that he would allow her to leave him.
But… Jordan wanted her to choose to stay. He didn’t like that thought, though. He’d never understood why the Wolf had insisted on a formal choice being declared when it was obvious the couples in the Compound were fine with their arrangements. Finally understanding why Marek had asked Laura for a formal choice made Jordan feel… vulnerable.
He brushed it away, clamping down on his emotions as he lengthened his stride, and tried not to as though like he were running from something. “All the passageways are behind symbols, but not all the symbols have passageways. They’re not commonly known, although everyone knows they’re there. You could get lost in them if you don’t know where you’re going.”
As if to emphasize his point, they had already reached an intersection that branched off into four other passageways; five, including the one they had just come from. Jordan had them memorized, but for someone who didn’t have a map, they could be confusing. On the other hand, with a good enough sense of direction, it wouldn’t be too terribly hard to figure out some kind of pathway to the outside.
“But what are we doing in here?”
“There was a… disturbance on our usual route,” he lied, hoping that was the end of her questions. He didn’t like the wayher questions made him feel as though she were looking for an escape.
Trish hadn’t been actively doing so since the first few days after he’d taken her, and Jordan liked it that way.
